


I'm Gonna Take You for Worse or Better

by spilladrop4orpheus



Category: Hadestown - Mitchell
Genre: F/M, drug use alluded to, mention of injecting medicine, severe injuries (not graphic)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-07
Updated: 2020-06-17
Packaged: 2021-03-02 19:13:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,224
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24051907
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/spilladrop4orpheus/pseuds/spilladrop4orpheus
Summary: Hades is injured in the mines and Persephone has to set her anger aside as her husband fights to stay alive.
Relationships: Hades/Persephone (Hadestown)
Comments: 7
Kudos: 94





	1. Some people die just a little. Sometimes you die by the drop.

**Author's Note:**

> I know it's been done before (and done very well I might add), but it's a good trope. So here's my take.

It was an unusual thing for a god to die, but it wasn’t unheard of in dire circumstances. Hades was in such a situation with a significant amount of his ichor pooled in the mine that had collapsed around him. Hecate had done what she could to stop the bleeding and dress his wounds after they pulled him out, but now she felt helpless with nothing left to do but wait.

“I’ll send for Persephone,” she said to the king who was conscious enough for the moment, though likely not for long.

“No,” Hades replied, his voice hoarse as he strained to speak.

He wanted Persephone there. He wanted to see her more than anything, but he was afraid of the response if she was asked to come. The uncertainty was preferred to knowing for sure that she would refuse him even as he lay seriously injured. It crossed his mind that with the way things had been between them, she might come back down just for the satisfaction of watching him take his last breath.

“No need to trouble her. Don’t want my wife to get her hopes up in case I live.” He let out a breath of air that was meant to be a laugh, but quickly turned into a cough.

Out of the corner of her eye Hecate saw Persephone appear in the doorway, clearly not amused by her husband’s sense of humor.

“Is that what you think? That I want you dead?” Persephone’s voice sounded cold and distant as she tried not to let all of the emotions she was feeling break through.

Hades could only stare in disbelief at her presence as Hecate stepped outside of the room to speak with her about her his condition.

Persephone had a hard time concentrating on what Hecate was saying, picking out only a few words here and there as her mind raced.

“Inspection.”

_He’s alive! Thank The Fates he’s still alive._

“Collapse.”

_I made it in time. He’s awake!_

“Saved the workers.”

_I can talk to him. He’ll know I’m here._

“Internal damage.”

_What if he doesn’t—?_

Persephone pushed the intrusive thoughts from her head as she tried to focus on what Hecate was saying.

“I’ve patched him up the best I could. I just gave him something for the pain and to help him sleep. All we can do now is wait and hope that his body heals itself fast enough before—” She paused trying to be as tactful as possible. “Well, there’s a lot of damage and he’s lost a lot of ichor.”

Persephone could only nod her head, tears welling in her eyes. She found the whole situation to be surreal. How could this be happening?

Hecate grabbed Persephone’s hand in both of hers and gave a sad smile. “It’s good that you came. I’ll give you some time with him. He may not be awake for long. I’ll be back later to check on you both.”

Persephone took a moment to collect herself before stepping into the room. She had the whole train ride to prepare herself, but seeing him like that, so battered and bruised, was almost too much for her. With a deep breath, she stepped through the doorway, seeing the same look of surprise and confusion still etched on his face.

“You wanna tell me why you didn’t think it was necessary for me to be here?”

His expression turned to one of pain as he turned his head away from her.

“This isn’t real.” The disappointment in his voice was obvious. “You’re not real.”

_Oh, Hecate’s drugs must be good. Good and quick._

Hades continued, clearly well under the influence as his words began to slur. “It’s summer. You’re not supposed to be here. You’re not really here.”

She reached for his hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. “You sure about that?”

His head snapped back towards her and he winced at the movement before staring at their joined hands.

“Are you...are you real?”

“Real as you. Hermes sent for me the moment he heard what happened.”

Hades narrowed his eyes at her. “Your mother wouldn’t—” He struggled to get his words out. “Wouldn’t give up her time any more than I would.”

“Well, I guess she’ll be plenty pissed when she finds the note I left then. She’ll get over it...in a century or two.”

“Not likely.”

By now Persephone had noticed how quiet and raspy his voice had become. It was definitely not the booming voice she was accustomed to hearing.

“I had to come. My husband needed me.”

His eyes slowly drifted shut as he whispered, “I always need you.”

There was no use trying to stop the tears from falling at this point. She brushed back the hair at his temple. “You just rest now. I’ll be here when you wake up.”

Persephone struggled to keep her eyes open, but couldn’t bring herself to succumb to sleep. She had watched him for hours, every rise of his chest an indication that his body was clinging to life. It frightened her, how fragile and lifeless he looked. The only sound in the room was his labored breathing, shaky and shallow, accentuated by the occasional gasp or moan. Persephone was left alone with her thoughts and what a jumbled mess those were right now.

What if he didn’t make it? No, she couldn’t think like that. He was going to pull through. But what happens when he’s better? They didn’t exactly part on the best of terms. Words were exchanged, words not easily forgotten by either party. How can she stay mad at him when he’s fighting for his life though? Does she just pretend like they weren’t having problems before? Their issues weren’t going to go away just because he had almost died. Might still die, those voices in the back of her mind taunted. Whatever problems they were having, she’d gladly face them so long as it meant he was alive and well.

Her hand kept moving to reach for her flask only to stop short when she remembered that it had been forgotten up above in the rush to get to her husband. There were several places were she could get her hands on something to drink but that involved leaving his side. The only thing worse than something happening to him would be if it happened while she was off tending to her vices. Despite the need for that dulling comfort, she knew she had to stay sober right now.

She went to his bedside and stood over him. He didn’t look peaceful or serene like he used to when he slept, of course it had been some time since she last had the opportunity to watch him sleep. He looked like he was in pain and it was no surprise as she took stock of his injuries. But Hades was a tough son of a bitch and if any god above or below could pull through this, she had to believe it’d be him.

“Fight, you bastard! You just keep fightin’! Don’t you dare die on me.”

She took hold of his hand hoping he knew she was there with him.

“Persephone,” he mumbled.

“I’m here, baby. I’m right here.”

She bent down and placed a kiss on his forehead, before a voice from behindstartled her.

“You get any sleep yet?”

Persephone turned around, surprised to see Hermes standing next to her. She hadn’t even heard him come in with his feather-light step.

“Running yourself ragged isn’t gonna help him any.”

“Not tired,” she said as she sat back down in her chair, trying to suppress a yawn.

He let the lie go unchallenged. “He was afraid you wouldn’t come, you know.”

“Stupid man.”

Hermes took a seat in the chair next to her. “To be honest, the way you two left off in the spring I had my doubts too.”

“Well then you’re both stupid.” She crossed her arms and turned away from him. A moment later she was back around in his face mad as hell. “Do you both really think so little of me? You think I’d be living it up while he’s—” She couldn’t get the words out so she just gestured to him. “He’s my husband! Just because we fight, doesn’t mean I don’t love him! I love him more than anything on, above, or below this earth.” Her voice began to crack as anger gave way to fear.

“He know that?”

She rolled her eyes. “‘Course he does.”

“Maybe you should make sure he knows when he wakes up.”

“Mind ya business.”

“Just trying to help.”

“Well the day I start taking relationship advice from you is the day they can have me committed.”

Hermes had to chuckle at her dig. He didn’t mind being her punching bag for the time being if it meant distracting her a little from the situation at hand.

“I can’t lose him, Hermes.”

“He’s a stubborn man, your husband.”

“And don’t I know that better than most.”

“Much too stubborn to die. He’ll be up and driving you crazy again in no time.”

She rested her head on Hermes shoulder. “That’s all I want. I don’t even know what I’d do without him.”

“I don’t think you’ll never have to find out.” Hermes put his arm around her. “Just sleep, sister. I’ll keep an eye on him for ya...wake ya if anything changes.”

Her eyes were closed and she was out before he finished his last sentence.


	2. Some people die in the middle. I live just fine on the top.

“Persephone?”

Persephone awoke to the soft whisper of her name and the slight shaking of her shoulder.

“Hmm?” As her eyes opened, it took her a moment to remember where she was. “Hades!”

A gentle hand on her shoulder prevented her from bolting right out of her chair.

“He’s okay,” Hecate reassured her. “It’s almost time for more morphine. I didn’t want you to be startled when he starts to wake up. He’ll be in a lot of pain.”

As if on cue, Hades let out a groan. He seemed to be awake but was too overcome with pain to notice anything going on around him.

“I think it’s safe to increase his dose now so it might make him a little loopy while he’s awake.”

“Well, won’t that be something.”

Hecate pulled a tin out of her bag and opened it to reveal small vials and a needle.

“What did you say you were giving him?”

“Morphine. The mortals use it for pain and occasionally for its euphoric effect.”

Now that caught Persephone’s attention. She took a peek into the bag sitting next to her to see quite a few tins.

Hecate continued talking to Persephone as she gave Hades another dose. “I had Hermes gather as much as he could from up top. We’ve got plenty for him now.”

“The mortals get that from Morpheus?”

“Not quite. Just named after him. They actually have you and your mother to thank for this. It comes from the poppy plant.”

“Poppies? We make muffins outta the seeds.”

“Yes, well it has many uses.”

“I’m gonna have to start paying more attention to what those crafty little creatures are doing with our plants.”

“They’re nothing if not innovative.”

Hecate started to change Hades’ bandages and while she was occupied, Persephone took the opportunity to swipe a tin...for research, she told herself. She needed to know the full capabilities of her plants. Nothing wrong with that. Hecate certainly wouldn’t miss one tin and there was no sense in bothering to ask seeing as how she was so focused on taking care of Hades.

The morphine seemed to take effect on him almost immediately as Hades sunk back against his pillow with half-lidded eyes once his bandages had been changed. Persephone could see the relief wash over his face. His head lolled from side to side as he struggled to keep awake.

“Hades you need to sleep,” Hecate finally said to him.

Persephone snorted, thinking of all the times she had told him the very same thing. Her pig-headed husband worked too hard and slept too little for her liking. Even while drugged he was fighting it. It was nice to see someone else argue with him over it for a change.

“No sleep.” Hades shook his head like a petulant child. “Have to stay awake.”

“You can barely keep your eyes open. Why are you fighting this?”

“When I close my eyes…I see her.” There was a sadness in his voice that left no doubt as to whom the “her” was referring to. “Don’t want to see her in my dreams anymore.”

Persephone’s stomach dropped as she worried that he was meaning he didn’t want to see her at all. Was her presence upsetting him? Maybe she should have listened when he said he didn’t want her there.

“Want to see my wife for real.”

“Your wife is right here.” Hecate spoke up where Persephone couldn’t as she struggled to process her emotions.

“My wife?” He tried to sit up and look around but his injuries prevented him from getting far. “Have you seen her? If you see the most beautiful woman in the world, you’ve found her.”

Hecate and Persephone exchanged glances, both trying to suppress a laugh. Hades had become very giddy under the influence of the morphine and it was behavior they were not used to seeing.

“Yes, I’ve seen her. She is very beautiful,” Hecate agreed, trying to placate him.

“She’s more than just a pretty face, you know! Queen of this realm. Gotta take more than looks to do that. She’s smart and funny. Oh and she’s good at Dominoes. That’s important.” His words had begun to slur again. “You can’t rule the Underworld unless you are good at Dominoes. I…am also very good.”

Hecate glanced at Persephone who was shaking her head no as Hades continued talking about her.

“She’s nice...sometimes and she smells like flowers. I don’t know what kind though.” His brow furrowed as he tried to think of different kinds of flowers. “The pretty smelling kind.” Hades had a faraway, dreamy look in his eyes. Without warning, he grabbed Hecate’s arm and gasped. For a moment, both she and Persephone thought he was in pain as his eyes grew wide. “What if she doesn’t smell like the flowers, but the flowers smell like her?” His mouth hung open like he had just discovered the secrets of the universe.

Hecate did not know how to respond to his drug-induced theory.

Persephone finally interjected. “As fun as this is, you need to get your rest. Rambling on ain’t gonna heal you up any quicker. Even if it is about how nice you think I am...sometimes.”

Hades’ eyes opened wide in surprise as he turned to her. “You’re here? You’re really here?”

Persephone let out a long sigh as she got up to stand by his bedside. “Yes, husband. We’ve had this conversation before.”

Hades frowned, looking very upset. “I’m sorry. Can’t remember.”

“It’s okay. A head injury and drugs will do that. Don’t you worry about it. I’ll keep having this conversation with you as many times as I need to until you remember. But you still need to get some sleep.”

“You’ll be here when I wake up?”

“Yes.”

“I might forget that you’re here.”

“Like I said, as many times as it takes.”

She watched as Hades head rolled to the side as he fell asleep, content in the knowledge that she was there.

A few days later, it seemed that Hades was going to make a full recovery. He still had a ways to go, but the critical injuries were healing nicely. In one of his slightly more lucid moments, he looked over at Persephone and saw her toss and turn in the chair.

“You can’t be comfortable trying to sleep like that. Why don’t you go sleep in an actual bed? No sense in both of us being uncomfortable.”

“I don’t want to leave you.”

“I’m not going anywhere, lover. If I was gonna die I surely would have done so by now, saved myself a lotof agony. And I can’t sneak off to my office if that’s what you’re worried about.”

He had already tried making inquiries as to the state of his kingdom and a few business deals that were pending. Hermes, Hecate, and Persephone had all shut his questioning down telling him to just focus on getting better.

Persephone raised an eyebrow at him. “You trying to get rid of me?”

His face turned serious at her joke. “Never. You know I’d keep you with me forever if I could.”

Persephone had half a mind to tell him she’d let him, but thankfully she bit back the words. She wasn’t about to make promises they both knew she couldn’t keep.

“I know you would.”

“Well, if you won’t find a more comfortable place to sleep...” He patted the sliver of space on the bed next to him. “There’s room right here. Not much though, so we’ll just have to get real close.” He smiled and very obviously blinked at her a few times in what she assumed was his drugged attempt at a wink.

_Gods, he’s cute like this._ Not that she wanted her man drugged up, but it was nice to see him relaxed. She hadn’t seen him like that in a long time. It made it hard to remember why she had been mad at him for so long. Hard, but not impossible.

“Are you serious? You’re laying there broken and beaten damn near to death, high as the peaks of Mount Olympus and you still find it in you to proposition me?”

Hades just shrugged. “Can’t blame a man for trying…with how good you look right now.”

She scoffed. She had hardly left his bedside over the past few days and she was certain that she looked terrible. Dark circles and bloodshot eyes. Wrinkled clothes. Hair an absolute mess.

“I can sure blame him when he’s in no condition to be entertaining ideas like that. I’m afraid you wouldn’t survive, lover. Not in the state you’re in.”

“You’re worth it, as I recall.” He gave her the goofiest grin she had ever seen that was 50% him and 50% the medication he was on. “Of course it has been a long time. Might not be remembering correctly,” he mumbled.

She narrowed her eyes at him. “Glad to see you didn’t lose that charm of yours in the mine. Tell you what, you get yourself healed up and I’ll be sure to remind you just what you’ve been missing out on ever since you’ve been acting like an idiot.”

“I knew there was a reason to live,” he deadpanned.

She got up and moved her chair as close to his bed as she could get it. She placed her hand on his and rested her head next to him on the pillow. “Until then, this is as close as I dare get.”

Hades shifted slightly, wincing at the pain, so his forehead touched hers as he interlocked their fingers. “This is nice too.” He finally closed his eyes after he was certain that Persephone had fallen asleep next to him.

**Author's Note:**

> Fic and chapter titles from Die by the Drop by The Dead Weather which seems like a Persephone song to me.


End file.
